Flying Frontier During the Pandemic
Donna and I have traveled twice on Frontier during the Pandemic. We flew a round trip to Bismark, North Dakota and a round trip to Las Vegas, Nevada. The experience we had very good and we felt same on the flights. Like I always say it is up to you when you feel comfortable traveling or leaving your home in general but this is to be a guide so you can see what it might be like if you choose to travel on Frontier.
Check in: At each airport they have marked 6 feet of distance at the check in counter and you are required to wear a mask while at all parts of the airport. We were able to social distance at pretty much each airport but at the Las Vegas Airport check in got very crowded so things were a little closer than I would have liked but was still ok with everyone wearing a mask. Plexiglass was put in between the check in employees and us at the counter. Each check in was pretty quick even with the crowd at Las Vegas. That check in took 15 minutes or so.
Airport Security: At each airport the security line was also pretty quick. 5-10 minutes at the max. We were able to social distance in most areas and we were required to wear a mask. The TSA agent no longer looks at your boarding pass and you still give them your ID. The rest of the security process is the same as it was before but with more social distancing if you cam. They will ask you to pull your mask down to see your face briefly. It is like this no matter what airline you fly with.
At the Gate and Terminal: At most airports we have been at they have not been overly crowded except when changing planes in Denver. In Denver on the way to Bismark, North Dakota the terminal was pretty congested. We were able to find an area with fewer people around and stayed away until it was time to board the plane. In Las Vegas, in the terminal many of the shops, casinos and even a concourse were shutdown. It was easy to social distance there. In Bismark, the terminal is quite small and there were not that many people there so it was not hard to social distance there and we waited away from everyone. Most airports have seats blocked off for extra social distancing. When at Denver coming home from North Dakota we had a very long layover and rental cars were expensive so we decided to stay at the airport Hilton Garden Inn that gives day rates. We used the time to rest some before returning back to work the next day. It kept us away from any crowds during the layover and is another option you have in travel.
Boarding process and flight: For Frontier they board group 1 first (those with carry on bags) and then they board from back to front calling out row numbers. The reduces people walking past each other on the plane. When they call your row number they will use a contactless thermometer to take your temperature. Anyone with a temperature above 100.4 will not be allowed to fly. Frontier is blocking middle seats on certain rows for a time so we booked our seats on a blocked middle seat row so we could allow for extra social distancing and there be fewer people around us. The flight attendants announced multiple times that masks must be worn over you mouth and nose at all times and we saw most of the passengers complying with this unless they were eating or drinking. Frontier is no longer selling food other than small bottles of water to avoid more interaction. When we got to our seat we used disinfecting wipes we brought with us to sanitize the touch points on our seats. All of the flights were uneventful and went smoothly. Each of the flights we took were pretty full with only the blocked seats and a handful of other seats empty.
Deplaning and Baggage Claim: One process that has not changed much on any airline is the deplaning process. When you arrive at the gate people still stand in the aisle in a mad rush to get off the plane. We stayed in our seats to avoid that (as we did before the pandemic) and waited our turn to leave the plane. At baggage claim nothing much as changed as well but there are plenty of signs mentioning social distancing and wearing masks. We saw some people wearing their mask on their chin or with their nose exposed but we each time found an area around the baggage belt where we could social distance.
We once again found traveling with Frontier to be safe and we enjoyed both of our trips during the pandemic. We found that the majority of people were following the rules and the Frontier did everything they could to make travel safe. These were our experiences flying with Frontier and things could always be different depend on where you are going. Once again it is up to you to decide when you think it is safe again to travel but we have found that it is pretty safe when we have traveled.
